Stay on target

Volvo has been building cars since 1927. Like most manufacturers, they’ve been adding more hybrid and EV models to their line-up in recent years. By 2019, that’s all they’re going to put on the road.

Starting in 2019, Volvo will no longer utilize gas or diesel-only engines in its vehicles. Every model will be available as either a hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or pure EV. The company has also set a goal of selling 1 million battery-equipped vehicles by 2025.

Right now, they’re seeing steady sales of the electrified XC90 (which boasts 400 total hp and an impressive 0-60 time of 5 seconds flat). From January to December, Volvo moved just over 2000. Not bad, considering its $70,000 sticker price.

Clearly they’ve got a long way to go before they hit their million-car mark. Still, given that Volvo sold more than half a million in 2016, they should be able to hit that mark pretty easily by 2020, provided their electrification push doesn’t hit any snags.

The sales momentum for electrified vehicles is certainly in Volvo’s favor. Toyota has put more than 10 million hybrids on the road since they started selling them in 1997, and they’ve been selling around 1.2 million a year since 2012.

Other automakers have been doing a brisk trade of late, too. Tesla delivered around 76,000 of its EVs last year. Chevy continues moving 2-3000 Volts every month, while Nissan’s Leaf and Ford’s Energi models remain above the 1,000 mark.

Those numbers should continue climbing steadily for the foreseeable future. According to auto industry execs, we’re getting close to the tipping point where electrified vehicles will cost the same to produce — or less — than their straight gas or diesel counterparts.